24 #2
"So, you're a regular old movie star now, eh?" he teased, stopping to read his phone. "Oh, and hope you don't mind…I've called me lov'a over!"
I rolled my eyes. His phone rang like six times in a row and I voiced my mounting suspicions.
"Y'know...I'm starting to think you're maybe a drug dealer, mate."
"Well, shit, thanks for tellin' uz! Not everythin's a bloody movie, ya know?"
"I've been paying attention for a while now. You're definitely, uh, some sort of low-level trafficker or something," I squinted, then laughed. "Shouldn't've told you my suspicions, though. Should've set you up with a wire first," I drank the last of my soda, trying to stay sober for the night.
"Oh God...you got me! Alert the feds!" he scoffed. "Wait a minute...low-level? Is that what you bloody think of me? Trust and believe, if I were ever to get involved, I would move some serious weight. And I'd be too rich to even bother with the likes of you."
"M'serious, y'know," I persisted. "You hop over to Cali for a few days—"
"Oh it's 'Cali' now...pfffft!" he cackled.
"No one knows your whereabouts. You're hard to pin down. You've got two phones, mate. Two! Who needs two phones, you ask? Only drug dealers and cheaters, and you're not even married."
He applauded me. "Great work, Sherlock.”
Now he topped off my Pepsi with vodka, and I didn't object like I should have.
"What is it? Coke, meth? Mate, I was wondering how you could afford that new Patek. Even I can't afford that Patek."
"Well, you could if you sucked a little more cock, just saying..."
"Fuck’s sake..." We laughed.
John stepped into the kitchen behind us.
"The things I'm overhearing in this conversation are beyond disturbing..."
Grimmy guffawed into his glass and spun around on the counter again. John took my drink from me.
"Eat some bread or something. Sober up!"
Later when Grimmy's date arrived, they did exactly what I thought they would.
Sat in an unlit corner of the lounge and snogged while we all watched another movie.
As the celebrations drew to a close, I dreaded the idea of everyone leaving me alone for the night.
Surprising myself, I whipped out my phone and texted Rome, asking him if he wanted to come over.
I waited over twenty minutes for an answer, which eventually relayed he couldn't come tonight, and that it was best we play it cool for a while.
That maybe it wasn't a good idea to meet anytime soon.
I was annoyed, but couldn't be upset since things had moved so rapidly the last few moments we were together. Our actions had the potential to ruin everything he’d built for himself if he wasn't careful, particularly if Mila had stumbled on us that evening in an alternative universe.
For all I knew he was in bed with her now, planning to do God knows what to compensate for our actions.
Having repulsed myself with imagery of them fucking for the hundredth time since I'd met her, I headed onto the terrace alone, purging my mind with clean night air. I shut the rear lights off and stood in the darkness near the pool, gazing out over the dotted sky above the cypress hedges.
My phone buzzed, and it was him. He said although he was serious earlier about playing it cool, he still really wanted to meet soon.
As usual, his mood was bipolar and his messages utterly contradictory.
Still, the latest message more than made up for his refusal to meet tonight, so I smiled a little.
We agreed to meet tomorrow at his place and would decide where to go from there.
Someone placed their hands over my eyes from behind.
The fingers were slender and belonged to someone shorter.
Perky breasts jutted into my back. A few breathy giggles told me there was no need to panic, that it was just Violet, Ezra's niece who I'd met in Philly last year, and who had apparently come with him to town on business. Truth be told, she and I had slept together a few times on the road before the band called it quits. It was Invicta’s final tour. We’d been utterly gutted and demoralized by Rome’s departure, but had powered through in his absence to give the fans their money’s worth.
I was disoriented and fragile, and she’d been a convenient distraction.
However, that convenience had long since faded.
We hadn't spoken since last December when Ezra found out about us and nearly kicked my ass. It had taken a while for him to forgive me for encroaching on his family and breaking her heart.
"Heyyy..." I said, spinning around, barely able to see the platinum blonde head standing behind me.
"Hey yourself! You didn't come say hi, so I thought I'd check in. See what's up," she grinned.
"Sorry about that. I should've come over sooner. I meant to, anyway. I'm an idiot. Forgive me?"
“Ok, mister. How’ve you been?”
"I've been good, Vi. It’s lovely to see you. How've you been?"
"Honestly... missing you so much." She had huge green eyes, the most prominent things on her face.
"Yeah...you too," I shrugged.
We hooked arms and walked around the glimmering pool a bit. She was illuminated by the colorful LEDs that surrounded it. Her full lips and upturned nose and the bit of cleavage poking out of the top of her white cami. I vividly remembered how sweet she smelled the last time we were together.
"I was stood out here last night and, uh, got bit up by mosquitoes,” I said. “All over, really. It was pretty nasty. Wanna head inside?"
"Only if we can be alone," she murmured, taking my hand and playing with my limp fingers. "I wanna catch up."
"Sure," I shrugged, letting her lead me back inside and upstairs to my room.
There were a few remarks from Grimmy's corner as we disappeared upstairs.
Once we got to my room, I could barely shut the door before she was on me, snatching at my shirt and standing on her tiptoes to kiss me.
She smelled rosy, and the flesh of her arms was so soft I couldn't resist stroking them.
In a flash her shirt was off, revealing she hadn't been wearing a bra.
Now she was shoving me onto the bed to mount me.
***
After a whirlwind of pale breasts and frizzy hair and her psychotic scream-moans, I woke to the sound of someone banging on the bedroom door. It was Ezra. Fuck's sake. I answered shirtless, barely pulling my briefs back into place. He rolled his eyes the second he saw me.
"You're taking her home!" we said at the same time. "No, you are!"
"Dude, I didn't come here for this shit!" he barked.
"Neither did I!" I hissed.
"You live here!"
"I know, I know...it all happened so fast.” I whispered frantically. “She said she missed me a-a-and I couldn’t resist—"
"Don't give me that shit!”
“Shhh! She’ll hear you!”
“You do it every time, Rafe!” he barked quietly. “Every fucking time, man! I'm sick of cleaning up your mess!"
"Then why'd you even bring her here?!" I growled.
Instead of a screaming match, it had become a hiss fight since she was still sleeping a few feet away.
"Excuse the fuck out of me for assuming you'd be able to exercise even a modicum of self-control! It’s been over a year since you last saw her, freak!"
"Fuck off, mate, alright—"
"I'm not dealing with her calls and questions and crying again!"
“Quiet, fuckhead!”
"Fix it," he spat. “Now.”
"I will, I will. I’m sorry, mate. Fuck’s sake. I'll let her know. I just didn't wanna hurt her...I hate seeing people get hurt."
"So what, your grand plan is to just keep sleeping with everyone in perpetuity because you're too much of a pussy to be upfront? Great thinking, genius."
"Fuck’s sake, mate, chill," I pleaded. "I'll take care of it. I promise. Will you wait for her?"
"Whatever.”
He then reached through the door and gave me the worst purple-nurple of my life. As I hissed in agony, he walked away with a triumphant laugh.
Nipple throbbing, I sat beside Violet on the bed and stroked her cheek until she awakened.
"Hey..."
"Hey, you..." she whispered, eyes like sparkly slits.
"Mornin'"
"Is it really?"
"No, not really. More like 2AM."
She laughed. "What're you doing up, silly? Come back to bed.”
She sat up and hugged me. Her breasts spilled out of the sheet. Resisting her became that much more difficult. The feathery softness of her flesh made me shoot up from the bed to put distance between us.
"What's wrong? You okay?"